The California Water Environment Association presented its Southern California Facility of the Year Award to Aircraft X-Ray Laboratories in Huntington Park on Jan. 30.
Justin GuzmanJustin Guzman, president of Aircraft X-Ray Laboratories, accepted the award at the CWEA banquet. AXL offers a full range of inspection services and surface finishing treatments to a variety of industries. The facility won the CWEA’s P3S Committee’s Southern California Facility of the Year Award in the Small industry category.
AXL was nominated by Greg Neunsinger, Senior Industrial Waste Inspector from Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts.
Guzman says that receiving the award was bittersweet, as a day earlier, the CWEA members learned that John Boyd, a longtime Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts supervising inspector, passed away unexpectantly on his way to the event.
Guzman says he accepted the award in honor of Boyd, whom he had met about 18 years ago.
“My impression back then was, ‘those inspectors, they’re out to get you,’” Guzman says. “But almost instantly, the conversation with John was that of a father figure. It was ‘It’s not us against you; it’s working together for a better environment.’”
Guzman says Boyd was always helpful in giving advice or sharing with AXL staff how other facilities were meeting guidelines or solving issues.
“It was always advice such as, ‘I have another site, and I noticed that they were doing it this way,’ or ‘if possible, do that,’” Guzman says. “To receive the award this year and to know that John was so involved with awarding industry makes all the sense in the world because that is just who John was.”
Strong, Consistent Leader in Industrial Waste Group
John BoydStephen Sealy, a Supervising Industrial Waste Inspector for the LACSD and chair of the South Facility of the Year Awards Committee, says Boyd was a strong, consistent leader in the Industrial Waste group for the county.
“He performed inspections at most, if not all, companies that perform metal finishing in the area,” Sealy says. “He was not only a regulator of the metal finishing industry but also an advocate, helping many companies to understand and comply with the complex regulations of our industry.”
Neunsinger says Boyd had been the Supervising Industrial Waste Inspector for the last 15 years and that he treated all of the inspectors, fellow employees, and dischargers with the utmost respect.
“John’s position required a lot of contacts with other agencies and dischargers that required guidance, patience, and knowledge,” Neunsinger says. “On a personal and professional level, John was always there to offer guidance and support as well as providing a ‘listening ear’ for situations that occur during employment activities and personal situations. He is missed already, and I have been fortunate to know and work for John Boyd.”
The late John Boyd speaking at a previous CWEA conference.The purpose of the CWEA Facility of the Year Award is to create an incentive on the part of industrial users to take proactive steps to meet current environmental pollution control standards. The CWEA says the award gives an opportunity for members to provide positive publicity and recognition of the industrial user’s efforts and successes in protecting the water environment.
Sealy says the CWEA committee members were impressed with AXL knowledgeable and committed environmental staff, as well as their implemented processes of treated wastewater, preventative maintenance efforts to minimize or reuse waste materials, and consistent record of compliance with sewer and stormwater discharge requirements.
“Companies such as yours provide an example of how a joint commitment by management and employees to effective waste management yields excellent results,” Sealy wrote in a congratulatory letter to AXL President Justin Guzman.
AXL Helped Pioneer NDT
AXL helped pioneer non-destructive testing more than 80 years ago and is a respected Nadcap operation. And with approvals from companies such as Bell Helicopter, Boeing, Cessna, Aerojet, Gulfstream, Fairchild, Hawker Beechcraft, Lockheed Martin, Moog, and Northrop Grumman, AXL is one of the leading finishers in the aerospace industry.
AXL provides chemical conversion coatings, painting, anodizing, etching, and additional surface treatments. They are also Nadcap Certified in AS 7114 Rev D Non-destructive Testing, AC 7004 Rev D Standard Quality Program, and AC 7108 Rev D Chemical Processing.
CWEA empowers wastewater professionals as they protect California’s most critical resource: water. Their community of 10,000+ professionals represents all facets of wastewater management and resource recovery, from operators to lab techs to engineers. Founded in 1928, CWEA unites professionals from throughout the state and addresses real-time issues, develops and delivers cutting-edge training, raises awareness of the profession, and shapes the future of wastewater.
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